Herter Brothers chair - original upholstery?

Here are some photos of one of my latest finds.  I'm nearly positive the chair is Herter Brothers, as it has the same structure and similar details as a chair from Woodlands, the James Goodwin House in Hartford, CT.  See page 175 of "Herter Brothers; Furniture and Interiors for a Gilded Age".  According to the caption, "One of a number of small chairs of this form that Herter Brothers made in several different woods and finishes and with minor variations in the restrained incised ornament...".  My chair is an ebonized finish over what looks like cherry.  If doesn't have the fourth seat rail in the back that the Woodlands chair has, but it was built that way.  It is not signed that I can see and has no markings, but I believe that is common.  Any thoughts?

What really intrigues me is that underneath two re-upholstery jobs, one very ratty (see the seat bottom in the pictures for an example), one in good condition, I found what I believe to be the original yellow silk (pictures).  The chair back is preserved in near perfect condition and the front upper shows dirt and some wear.  Unfortunately, the seat bottom is gone.  Still, in my short time collecting antiques, I don't know if I've seen well-preserved original upholstery on any Herter pieces.

If it is Herter and the upholstery is original, is it possible & not cost prohibitive (much greater than the value of the chair) to have fabric reproduced for the seat bottom or has anyone seen a similar pattern?  I didn't pay much for it, so I can probably invest a fair amount in it.  If reproduction is too expensive, I'll upholster over the original fabric to save it for another generation.

Hi..your chair does have many similarities to the referenced chair but there is something about it that leads me away from a Herter attribution. With unmarked pieces you need to use all your senses to come to a conclusion. Although its hard to tell without a shot of the chair from a distance, it seems to lack the wonderful sense of proportion Herter gave his pieces. Something about it just doesnt flow..if you know what I mean. Post a picture of it from a distance if you can. Your upholstery on the seat back is simply gorgeous..it would be very cost prohibitive to reproduce an upholstery pattern, even if they did it in China.

Anteekdoc - I tried to capture a shot at the exact angle to highlight the similarities and differences.  It is difficult being that I'd really like to take it outside to photograph it, but this time of year it is hard to see the sun.  Perhaps on Saturday.

When I compare the photos side by side, I'm not sure I see an overall difference of proportion or scale.  To me, the forms are remarkably similar.  The main difference, besides the obvious details, is that my chair seems to be more "delicate" - slightly thinner legs and rails.  It also has a smaller padded back which I find more visually pleasing  (though some of that may be due to the upholstery on the reference chair, I suspect it never covered as much of the back as it does now). 

Thanks for the response.

-Dave

It looks much nicer to me full frame. I would just freshen up the ebonized finish and recover it in a fine silk brocade. Would it be unorthodox to preserve the back upholstery and just recover the seat? I wish someone else would comment on the attribution.

I agree on wishing someone with more knowledge could comment on the attribution, although I suspect the lack of activity may be comment by itself.  ;)  Even if this is a Herter Bros piece, it is not one of their hallmark pieces.  Still, I doubt there are many that have the original upholstery (if it is).  We paid $36 for the chair, a deal that was way to good to pass up - the entertainment value alone of trying to find out about it has surpassed that.

We'll probably do one of two things with it, 1) do as you said, but cover over the upholstery for someone else to find later on or 2) donate it to the New York State Museum if they are interested.

Quote from: monkecmonkedo
I agree on wishing someone with more knowledge could comment on the attribution, although I suspect the lack of activity may be comment by itself.   ;)  Even if this is a Herter Bros piece, it is not one of their hallmark pieces.  Still, I doubt there are many that have the original upholstery (if it is).  We paid $36 for the chair, a deal that was way to good to pass up - the entertainment value alone of trying to find out about it has surpassed that.

We'll probably do one of two things with it, 1) do as you said, but cover over the upholstery for someone else to find later on or 2) donate it to the New York State Museum if they are interested.

My two cents, for what it is worth:

To my eye, your chair is much closer to the English prototypes for this form from which Herter drew their inspiration. The catalog entry for the Woodlands chair emphasizes the Herter refinements: "the smooth line" of the integrated front leg and seat rail, and the pared down spindling on the chair back. At the time the catalog was written, there were nine chairs of the form known, in several woods and finishes and with minor variants of the incised decoration. The fact that the known Herter chairs are first, so uniform, and secondly, that all but one of the nine chairs enumerated bear impressed inventory numbers seems to indicate that the design was a 'stock item'... there would be little reason, IMO, for Herter to have also manufactured a less elegant, less refined, less "Herter" version of the same form.

That said, your chair is wonderful,and a bargain to boot... had I encountered it in a shop, I would gladly have paid much much more than you did.

Regarding the upholstery, it would be very expensive to reproduce the fabric; the development and set up costs would be astronomical for such a small custom job. And since there is not a full repeat of the design, it would also be very difficult... unless research unveiled an exemplar of the same pattern, much of the "reproduction" would be mere conjecture. If you are not wed to the idea of replacing like-with-like (French rococo with another French rococo fabric), you might want to consider the Aesthetic Silk pattern from Historic Style: a Bruce Talbert designed fabric for a Talbert-esque chair.  If the chair-back is stable, there is no reason not leave the existing fabric in situ and cover over it; if it needs to be re-stuffed, then the original upholstery can be removed and stored in an acid-free box, for future reference and study. I would also document the upholstery, with detailed photographs and written notes, in as-found condition and in progress shots, if the upholstery is to be removed.

pax~
Cheryl